Officials in the EFL have been tasked with carrying out a number of new rule changes for the upcoming season. One of the main focuses will be the ongoing issue of time-wasting, which under the new ruling will be reduced and also challenged more by referees.
The proposal -released in a statement on the EFL website– is to keep the ball in play for longer by having a more accurate account of exactly how long the ball is out of play or the game has been stopped. This exact amount of time will now be added on to the end of the match. Under the old ruling, the official would add on a nominal period for certain events which include Goal celebrations, substitutions, injuries, and yellow and red cards.
The addition of a more accurately calculated amount of time at the end, will surely mean much longer matches and should see teams adopting the strategy less frequently. This kind of initiative was introduced in World Cup matches in Qatar and saw games with stoppage time that amounted to double figures. England v Iran had 13.59 minutes.
The announcement will surely please Middlesbrough boss, Michael Carrick who sets up his Boro side to monopolise possession and fashion lots of chances through their dominance with the ball. Being one of the top teams in the Championship, Middlesbrough regularly come up against teams who want to stifle that kind of attacking dominance. That can happen through time-wasting, but also through delaying the restart of play or players taking too long when requiring treatment. This will also be addressed according to the new set of directives.
The new ruling states, ‘Match officials will also be taking a more robust approach to dealing with clear/deliberate actions that are impactful in delaying the restart of play, with players cautioned if they are guilty of:
*Delaying the restart of play.
*Failing to respect the required distance at free-kicks.
Alongside these directives is the commitment to introducing a multi-ball system, which has proven to increase the amount of time the ball is in play during a match.
Aside form the main points surrounding the ball being in play more during the match, the two other main changes are as follows: If a defender makes a genuine attempt to challenge for the ball when giving away a penalty, it will only result in a yellow card. A player who gives away a foul inside the 18-yard box by pushing, pulling, holding etc in other words, with no chance of playing the ball; they will still receive a red card.
The other rule is regarding the offside rule.
The IFAB and FIFA have also clarified the guidelines for determining a ‘deliberate play’ by a defender.
A ‘deliberate play’ is when a player has control of the ball and with the possibility of:
- Passing the ball to a team-mate; or
- Gaining possession of the ball; or
- Clearing the ball (e.g., by kicking or heading it)
If a player is considered to be in control of the pass, attempt to gain possession or clearance, this would be a ‘deliberate play’ and the attacker in an offside position should not be penalised for offside. An inaccurate or unsuccessful action does not change the fact that the defender ‘deliberately played’ the ball.
The introduction of these rules will surely only benefit the free-flowing nature of Boro’s style of play. However, it may mean some very late finishes to matches, so fans may want to book that later train home!